Revolutionary stuff?
Having covered Nintendogs in some detail, we moved on to talk about the future for Nintendo. Marko revealed that Nintendo were looking at ways to exploit the DS’s solid WIFI capabilities with new ways of delivering content to gamers. One concept that they’re looking into is the possibility of downloading demos in games stores, to be able to try before you buy. If they follow through, this would be an excellent way of allowing gamers to have a crack at a game to see if they like it and, thinking about it, it would reduce the number of returns and help parents control what kind of games they buy for their kids as they can get a preview of the content.
Talking about the PSP and the DS, Marko believes that there’s plenty of room in the market for both handhelds. The PSP is aiming towards the older gamer, in that ‘magic’ 16-24 bracket (which made me feel old!), whereas the Ds is aimed at a younger market, or those who find they just don’t need all the functions the PSP provides.
And so we came to the Nintendo Revolution, the next-gen console from Nintendo which, other than a few mock-up shots and information about downloadable back catalogues, we’ve heard little about. Naturally, Marko was reluctant to discuss too much about the Revolution, but he did reveal that just as they have with the DS, Nintendo are looking to innovate with the way you interact with the console.
Marko said that the controller itself is going to be something rather special, so perhaps the hint in the console’s name is there? A revolutionary controller? Will they be using the Ds touchscreen technology in the Revolution controller? Anyone who has played the Metroid: Hunter demo on the DS will happily testify that the touch screen makes an FPS on a console much easier to control, aim and shoot… Will Nintendo be revolutionising the FPS console genre with a touchscreen controller? Marko stubbornly refused to be drawn on the subject, but he did say that Nintendo would be revealing more at the Tokyo Games Show later this month prior to the Revolution’s release sometime in 2006… so it looks like we’ll have to wait just another couple of weeks to see what it’s all about.
